Living or Conservation: Is There a Choice?

Yes, there is a choice, but for most people in Central Africa, killing elephants and selling the meat for profit is a growing business. For people that live on less than $1 dollar a day, making $6,000 or so by selling elephant meat is a no-brainer.
People in the forest live in such poverty they do not have time to think about animal conservation, said Andrea Turkalo, a researcher with the Wildlife Conservation Society who works in the Dzangha-Sangha National Park. “This country can’t run their health dispensaries, they can’t educate their children, how can you expect them to think about conservation?” she said. “I think people are still killing for ivory, but there has been a shift in the meat trade because of the human demographics. There are a lot more people here.” Read more for full content.